Weeks ago, The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump’s longtime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, had arranged for a payment of $130,000 to pornographic actress Stephanie Clifford, who goes professionally by the name Stormy Daniels. The money was allegedly meant to keep Clifford quiet about a sexual encounter she and Trump had had in 2006; at the time it would have taken place, Trump was already married to his current wife, Melania.
While the Trump camp didn’t deny that Clifford had been paid the money, they did deny that the affair ever took place.
More importantly, though, is whether the payment was legal. It was made in October 2016 through a limited liability company, and could be seen as an in-kind contribution to the Trump campaign, which would have exceeded the amount Federal Election Commission (FEC) rules allow.
There was also the matter of who exactly paid the money. In a report published by The New York Times on Tuesday, Cohen claims he paid the money out of his own pockets. Not only that, he claims he was never reimbursed.
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“Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford, and neither reimbursed me for the payment, either directly or indirectly,†the lawyer told The Times. “The payment to Ms. Clifford was lawful, and was not a campaign contribution or a campaign expenditure by anyone.â€
The watchdog group Common Cause filed a complaint to the FEC about the payment. In response, Cohen said, “The complaint alleges that I somehow violated campaign finance laws by facilitating an excess, in-kind contribution. The allegations in the complaint are factually unsupported and without legal merit, and my counsel has submitted a response to the F.E.C.â€
The idea that a lawyer agreed to pay $130,000 to help out a client simply because he wanted to and didn’t get anything in return is ridiculous. Only Trump’s most extreme supporters are capable of believing the story Cohen is pushing.
